Eight relatives of some of the victims of the Glasgow bin lorry crash have cleared a legal hurdle in their fight for compensation. Appeal court judges have dismissed an appeal by Glasgow City Council against a judge’s ruling and upheld the decision that the relatives’ damages action can proceed despite their claims being ‘time-barred’.

The Damages (Investment Returns and Periodical Payments) (Scotland) Bill (previously discussed by us here) was examined this month by the Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee. The Committee received evidence, including formal evidence obtained at Committee meetings, to inform its report. The report was published on 3 December.

An inquiry into the Damages (Investment Returns and Periodical Payments) (Scotland) Bill has resulted in a Holyrood Committee concluding that the process of calculating long-term personal injury compensation should be both fair and transparent.

July 2018 saw Dallas McMillan’s Personal Injury team set a new record for compensation recovered for clients. In that month alone, the team recovered compensation totalling in excess of £1.3m for clients throughout Scotland.

When making a claim for compensation it is important to remember that you only have one chance to recover compensation for any injuries you sustained as a result of an accident, be it a road traffic accident, an accident at work or a slipping and tripping accident. You have three years from the date of your accident to recover compensation and if your case settles you are not entitled to go back and seek more compensation at a later date. You must therefore make sure that you appoint the right Solicitors to deal with your case, to ensure that your claim settles for its maximum possible value.

The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) has launched a new campaign to draw attention to the issue of dangerous substances in the workplace and promote the best ways of tackling the risks they pose to workers.

New research by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has revealed that as many as one in four UK construction workers believe they may have been exposed to asbestos fibres, placing them at higher risk of contracting terminal cancers later in life.

A new All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) has been established on Working at Height and its first official inquiry will look at the number of people seriously injured or killed after falling from height or being hit by falling objects at work.

Lawyers should not be blamed for the UK’s compensation culture, according to one Supreme Court judge. He said that it is unfair for people to describe lawyers as ‘ambulance chasers’, particularly because they are only doing a job, and that it is the system which is set up in favour of claimants which encourages such a large number of claims to be made. He said that it is not the lawyers who have created the system, and therefore cannot shoulder the blame for the number of claims which are made.

The 14th edition of the Judicial College Guidelines was published on 14 September 2017. The new guidelines have not introduced significant change to the level of damages for personal injury. Generally the Guidelines update figures with reference to the increase in the RPI (Retail Prices Index) of around 4.8%.It must be noted that the purpose of the guidelines is to assist parties and the court rather than to simply dictate figures.

A recent case in the Court of Session has helped to clarify the position in relation to the amount of compensation which should be paid to the family members of mesothelioma victims for “loss of society”.

Modern technology by the way of smart phones has its advantages, we have access to a wealth of knowledge at our fingertips and we can keep in touch with friends and family in many ways other than a simple phone call; sharing photographs and videos, social medial posts, text messaging and video chat. Despite the great technological advances, safety and common sense are perhaps not advancing at the same rate. The need to be constantly connected and in touch with friends and family can lead to distraction and absence of mental presence leading to potentially unsafe or dangerous situations. This is all the more clear in cases of mobile phone use while driving.